Is This Even Possible?
by saucyferret
Summary: One night Raphael saves a girl on the streets of NYC, and it turns into a burning love affair, but is it even possible for them to be together?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any version of TMNT, obviously.

Chapter 1: Now You Will Be Safe

"AAAAAHHHH!" A shrill scream rose above the sounds of the city and landed on the ears of one of four vigilantes.

"Did you guys here that?"

"Hear what, Raph?" Leonardo asked with concern as his brother turned to search for the source of the scream.

"Someone screaming." Raph looked over the edge of the building, but saw no one in the alleyway bellow.

"I didn't hear anything, Bro." Michelangelo chuckled at his brother, "Maybe you're going crazy."

"It is possible that someone screamed, but nothing is coming up on the police scanner." Donatello stated factually as he played with the nobs on his homemade scanner, sifting through static.

"I'm telling you guys, I heard something. We should check it out." Raphael grumbled in frustration as Leo placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Raph, I believe that you heard something, but don't you think we should be more concerned with what's actually happening, rather than chasing a sound without a source?" Raphael growled and shoved Leo's hand off of his shoulder.

"You guys might be okay sitting on your asses, but I'm not." He lifted himself to the edge of the roof and glared back at his brothers, "I'm gonna go check it out."

* * *

"Get off of me!" How could she have been so stupid? She knew that it was way too late for her to be walking alone, especially in this neighborhood, but her phone was dead and none of her classmates were heading in her direction. Now she had been grabbed by a gang of men and there was no response to her screams. She was panicking, thrashing and kicking out at her attackers but to no avail. There were four...no five? They kept moving, she couldn't see their faces, it was too dark; one grabbed her from behind and held her arms tight, another grabbed an ankle as she kicked and the next thing she knew she was in the air. When they tossed her to the ground she hit it with enough force to knock the wind out of her. As she gasped for air she felt her purse being ripped from her arms and her skirt being lifted to her waist. She heard one of the men grumble something about "This fucking fluffy skirt shit" and she let out another shriek. "HEEELP MEEEE!"

Suddenly, like an answer to a prayer, the weight on her legs was lifted. The men dispersed in a whirlwind of grunts and choked off screams, but she stayed on the ground, eyes tightly shut, body still frozen in fear. "Hey, are you okay, miss?" a voice, gruff but soft and filled with concern, whispered in her ear. Her eyes shot open and she turned to face her rescuer, then promptly burst into panicked screams.

"AAAAAHHHH! Oh my god, what are you?! Oh my god, what the fuck!" The creature stayed on its knees as she jumped up, fell, and crawled backwards until she hit a wall. It watched her as she slowly managed to calm herself, its face looking more and more annoyed every time she looked at it. Then, as she took deep breaths to calm herself and began looking around she noticed the six men who had been her attackers unconscious and tied together in a trash pile. She nodded then looked back at the creature. She took a deep breath, held it for ten seconds, then let it out and slowly came to her feet. She brushed off her dress, picked up her purse and noticed that she was missing a shoe. She sighed and looked at the creature, who was still kneeling before her, now looking confused.

"I'm sorry," She said, "that was rude of me, you saved me. Thank you." She reached out a hand and waited for him to take it, he hesitated, then took her dainty hand in his large, green, three-fingered one. He stood slowly as he held it, and as he stood the girl felt herself getting light-headed. He was absolutely massive and looked suspiciously like a giant turtle. "My name is Bevin...and you are?"

"Raphael." He said simply, then dropped her hand and turned to leave. Bevin panicked, she didn't want him to disappear.

"W-wait!" She called, reaching out, then recoiled when he turned to look at her. "Ah...um...well, I just was hoping...I live a few blocks south of here and was hoping...I mean obviously you can't walk me home, I imagine you don't introduce yourself to people very often, but I was wondering if maybe..." She stopped, looked up at his uninterested face, then looked back at her feet. "N-nevermind..." Raphael watched the girl as she turned and rushed from the alley. Once she had turned the corner he made his way to the rooftops and began tailing her. He was glad that he had decided to follow her because within the next block she was grabbed again, this time by one man with a knife. He grabbed her from behind, held one hand over her mouth and the knife to her throat and slowly backed her into the alley. Raphael rolled his eyes and wondered how often this girl got mugged. Then he dropped into the alley quietly and grabbed the would-be mugger by the back of the neck.

"Let go of her." The voice filled Bevin with relief and she sighed happily as the man released her. She spun around just in time to watch her rescuer toss the full grown man like a rag doll into a nearby dumpster. Then he turned to face her looking cross, which made her look at her feet in embarrassment. "Is this a normal thing for you? Getting mugged every few blocks?" She shook her head while looking at the ground.

"No...normally I have my brother walk me home, or I get a ride, but I'm just having bad luck tonight I guess..." Bevin could feel her face growing hot, she was utterly helpless and it embarrassed her. "Thank you for saving me...again." Raphael sighed.

"Where do you live?" He asked bluntly. Bevin felt her stomach twist with nerves as she looked up at the creature who rescued her, he looked extremely serious.

"49 West 11th street...it's a studio in an old brownstone..." Before she could say another word she was being scooped up easily into his arms.

"Hold on" was all he said, and as soon as her arms were around his neck he took off. Bevin shut her eyes tightly as he moved easily on the rooftops, she knew that if she opened her eyes she would panic and let go, then of course she would fall and probably die, so she held on as securely as she could. When they finally stopped moving Bevin opened her eyes and realized that they were on the fire escape of her building.

"It's this one on the top...thank you..." Bevin smiled at her savior and noticed for the first time the color of his eyes, a bright and very light shade of green that was striking through his red mask. She stepped onto the fire escape, unable to look away as she took a step back and proceeded to slip and nearly fall down the stairs of the fire escape. Raphael caught her easily and sighed as he tossed her over his shoulder and carried her to the window of her apartment, opened it, and dropped her inside. As he peaked inside he realized that it was extremely small, basically a hallway filled with a kitchen and bedroom. Bevin sat on her bed and looked from Raphael to her sad apartment and back, "Yeah...it's not much but it's really all I could afford...anyway, thank you...again. Honestly you should probably just stay here in case I trip getting off of the bed." Bevin laughed softly, but Raphael just looked at her. Bevin sighed, "Listen, you saved my life three times tonight, I can't just let you leave. Please, let me give you something." Raphael rolled his eyes but sat on the fire escape.

"I wouldn't have had to save you if you weren't wandering around by yourself at night." He said gruffly as she turned on the lights inside the apartment and began rummaging around.

"Well, like I told you before I don't normally walk home by myself, usually my brother picks me up from my late class and walks me home, but he was busy tonight with a dance recital and my phone died so I couldn't call anyone for a ride." Bevin opened her jewelry box looking for the necklace but couldn't find it, she cursed under her breath and ran to her dresser.

"If you were at a class don't you think you could have used someone else's cell phone?" Bevin paused and looked at Raphael through the window, then smiled at her face turned red.

"Yeah, I guess you're right...I didn't think of that..." She chuckled nervously and continued searching hurriedly. Finally, in a pile of dirty clothes she found what she was looking for. She crawled out onto the fire escape and handed it to Raphael.

"It's a necklace..." Raphael looked unamused.

"Well...yes." Bevin felt her hands shaking as she took the necklace from his giant hand and pointed to the stones that formed the necklace. "The blue ones are turquoise, the brownish ones are tiger's eye, and the black one in the center is chrysanthemum. They're all protection stones...I just thought that since you're in the business of saving people you could use some protection." Raphael grumbled and looked away from her sweet and genuine smile, by the time he glanced back her face had fallen in disappointment. "I'm sorry...I just wanted to thank you properly, you did save my life after all...but I understand, it probably is too girly for a big guy like you..." Raphael felt an unfamiliar heat in his face as he grabbed the necklace from her and hung it around his neck.

"How does it look?" Bevin smiled joyously at him, causing the heat in his face to rise.

"You look great, and now you'll be safe."

* * *

"Hey! It's Raph!" Mikey announced as his brother tried to sneak into the lair. Raphael glared at his brother and tried to retreat to his room, but he was not fast enough.

"Where have you been, my son?" A soft voice asked from the shadows. Master Splinter stepped into view as Raphael bowed respectfully.

"I had something to do, Master." He said simply, hoping that it was enough. He stood and looked his father in the eye and waited. Splinter looked him over and noticed the necklace, he observed his son's subtle nerves and smiled.

"Alright, my son, you may go." Raphael let out a sigh and turned to walk away, but paused when his father's voice called to him forcefully, "You will come talk to me in private, Raphael." Raphael gritted his teeth.

"Yes, Father." He then hurried into his room and shut the heavy metal door securely behind him. He looked at the necklace and recalled the girl's voice as she told him about their different properties, he looked at his hands and recalled how light she was and how easily she had held him. With a strange new weight in his chest he wondered if he would ever see her again...but at least he knew she was safe.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: I Wanted to See You Again

Bevin lay in bed, unable to sleep, as she watched the sun rise through the window; she did not want to fall asleep, afraid that the whole night would turn out to be a dream. The creature who had saved her, whatever he was, he was noble and kind and she hoped that she would see him again. As she finally drifted off in the hours of the early morning she thought of him and made sure that her window was unlocked in case he stopped by.

* * *

"So, my son," Splinter entered Raphael's bedroom and peered suspiciously at the young man, "are you ready to tell me about your mysterious evening?" Raphael took a deep breath and faced his father.

"Father...I met this girl...I mean I saved her...a few times..." Raphael stopped and gritted his teeth in frustration, why was he having so much trouble talking? This was not normal for him, still the weight in his chest and the heat in his face persisted and he wished they would go away. "She gave me this necklace as a thank you, that's all."

"But..." Splinter smiled knowingly and shut the door with his tail. When Raphael wouldn't respond or look him in the eye Splinter sighed, "my son, I know how you are feeling. You are at that age...but I fear that a human woman could never-"

"That's not what this is about!" Raphael snapped, "I told you, I saved her and she thanked me with a gift. That's all. I'm never gonna see her again." Splinter nodded.

"I hope not, son, I would not want you to get your hopes up..." Splinter turned to leave and spoke softly over his shoulder, "Get some rest, you will feel better with some sleep."

* * *

Raphael did not feel any better after getting sleep. In fact, he felt worse. His dreams had been filled with images of that girl, the way she looked at her feet, how tiny her hand was and how soft it felt in his, and mostly her smile. He went to breakfast with a new ailment, the weight in his chest was gone and the heat had finally dissipated from his face, but his stomach had tied itself in knots. He ate four slices of pizza in silence as his family went about their business around him.

"So, Raph," Leo's voice broke through his thoughts and made him jump, "what happened to you last night?"

"Yeah, and what's with the necklace, bro?" Mikey chimed in with a chuckle.

"Did you find the source of the scream you heard?" Donnie asked curiously.

"Yeah, I found the source." Raphael said softly and couldn't help but smile as he pictured her initial reaction to him, she really had been ridiculous.

"So...what was it?" Mikey asked.

"A girl was getting attacked by six guys, so I took 'em out." Raphael explained simply, trying to look tough.

"And the necklace?" Mikey persisted, tugging at one of the stones.

"Hey!" Raph grabbed Mikey's wrist and got into his face. "Don't touch it." He growled and shoved his brother back.

"Now I'm curious," Leo smiled suspiciously, "where'd you get the necklace, Raph?"

"The girl gave it to me, alright?" Raph grumbled grudgingly.

"On purpose?" Mikey asked.

"Yes!" Raph snapped then stood from the table and huffed off to the training room.

The three brothers looked at each other and smiled.

* * *

"What are you looking at?" Bevin jumped and looked at her friend, who was looking at her strangely. "You keep staring at the rooftops, are you looking for something?" Bevin looked at her feet as her face changed color. "Okay, what is it?" Her friend stopped and waited for her to respond. Bevin looked around and grabbed her friend's hand.

"Okay, Maya, you can't tell anyone about this." They walked closely and Bevin spoke softly, "So you know that vigilante that's in the news all the time? He saved me last night, like three times, and then he took me to my place."

"Oh my god, seriously? Is he hot?" Bevin paused and thought for a moment.

"Umm...not really in a conventional sense. But he is massive! He's like six and a half feet tall and built like a linebacker! He literally tossed a man over his shoulder with one hand!" Bevin found herself getting excited thinking about Raphael and how strong he had been. "He picked me up, Maya, with one hand and carried me home!"

"Oh my god, Bevin, how do you have such crazy adventures? He must be juiced up if he's that strong, though."

"Anyway he dropped me off at my place and I'm kind of hoping he drops by again...now that he knows where I live. It'd be nice to see him again."

* * *

Raphael sat on the roof opposite her fire escape and waited for the light to come on, his brothers had already gone home and he had managed to slip away. He knew it was stupid, she probably had no interest in seeing him again. Who would want to see a freak like him more than once in their life? Still, he couldn't bring himself to leave at least until he knew she was home. Finally the light came on and he felt the heat and the weight return and mix in with the knot in his stomach. He hated how one normal girl could affect him, it made him want to be near her and run away from her all at once. He noticed some movement inside the apartment, then watched as Bevin opened her window, crawled out and sat on the fire escape.

Bevin scanned the rooftops, hoping to see him, but saw nothing. She then taped a note to the window and crawled back inside.

Raphael snuck onto the fire escape and grabbed the note: _Raphael, I know this is kind of stupid, but I was hoping that I could see you again. If you get this note knock on the window while the light is on and I'll let you in. PS. I have pizza._

He took a deep breath and knocked on the window softly.

When Bevin heard the knock on her window she jumped to her feet and tripped over her area rug, then she stumbled on the edge of the bed on her way to the window. When she finally managed to open it she was so excited to see the strange yet familiar face and almost screamed.

"Raphael!" She smiled her overjoyed smile and Raphael looked away. He held up the note.

"You said you had pizza." He said flatly, trying to hide the myriad of crippling feelings that were fighting for dominance inside him.

Bevin nodded and ran to grab a pizza and a beer, then she paused.

"Umm...can you fit through the window?" It was a small window. Raphael looked at the dimensions and shook his head.

"Nope."

"Okay, then can you reach through and grab a blanket off of my bed, it's chilly out there." Bevin smiled and Raphael obliged, grabbing a fluffy batman comforter off of the bed. "Do you want a beer?" He shook his head and found a comfortable place to sit as he waited for her.

Bevin struggled to get out the window with a whole box of pizza and a bottle of beer, but with Raphael's help she managed. Then she wrapped herself in the comforter and opened the pizza box.

"I hope you like spinach and feta, it's my favorite." Bevin smiled at him and he looked directly at the pizza.

"I've never had spinach and...feta? Is that a cheese?"

"Yep. It's a great combo, especially with the white sauce instead of marinara." Raphael tried a piece and was surprised by how good it was, so he grabbed a second piece. Bevin opened her beer and picked out a small slice of pizza.

"I'm glad you came." Bevin said softly as she gazed at the sky, devoid of stars.

"Can I ask you a question?" Raphael asked hesitantly.

"Sure, anything."

"Why did you give this to me?" He motioned to the necklace.

"Truthfully, I was really just trying to keep you from leaving." She took a sip of her beer, "I wanted to see you in the light, I wanted to be sure you were real, and I wanted to make sure I would see you again. You know, not everyone would spend their time saving people just cause they can, and I wanted you to know that I appreciate it." Raphael felt the knot in his stomach loosen.

"Well...thanks...no one's ever thanked me before, let alone given me a gift..."

"You don't have to thank me, really." Raphael looked at her quietly for a long time, she sat so quietly and looked so adorable wrapped in her comforter, he wanted to look at her all night. "So, is it just you by yourself? I mean, there can't be too many crime fighting giant turtle men in the city right?"

"Well, it's me and my brothers. There's four of us, and our father."

"That must be nice," Bevin said absently, "getting to spend all that time with your family."

"Sometimes, mostly they're just a hassle." Bevin chuckled.

"Well of course they're a hassle, they're your family." She laughed to heartily that it made Raphael want to laugh too.

"Do you have a family?"

"Yeah, a big one. I'm the youngest of six, four boys and two girls. And my mom is one of eight, so I have...I think twenty eight cousins."

"Wow." Raphael couldn't imagine having that many people breathing down his neck.

"Yeah, most of them live down in Pennsylvania, though. I moved up here with my older brother when I graduated from high school."

"You said your brother had a dance recital, right? He's a dancer?"

"Yep, and he is a great dancer! I wanted to go to the recital last night but I had that late class and couldn't go, I felt bad."

"I meant to ask, what kind of class are you going to until nine-thirty?"

"A culinary class. I'm going to be a chef! Or I will cook very tasty meals for a very rich husband, I'm not sure yet." She laughed and turned to smile at Raphael. "It doesn't matter to me where I end up, as long as I can cook I'm happy. What about you, what's your passion?"

"Fighting."

"Okay, macho man." Bevin shoved him gently and her hand lingered on his bicep for just a moment, but long enough for him to notice. It was soft and so small, her touch was hesitant but not fearful, and so warm on his cold skin.

"Bevin, can I come back in a couple days?"

"Of course you can, Raphael. Leave me a note the night before you come over and I'll cook us something tasty."

"I'd like that."

Then they sat in alternating silence and conversation until Bevin glanced at her phone and jumped.

"Oh, shit! It's four in the morning! I really need to get to bed, I have to be at work in a few hours." She and Raphael stood and looked at each other for a long time, finally Raphael cleared his throat and spoke.

"I should get going, my father will be pissed at me already...good night."

"Good night, Raphael, see you soon."

* * *

When Raphael attempted to sneak into the lair that night he was met by his brothers, suspiciously shining flashlights in his face.

"Where have you been?" Leo asked seriously.

"None of your business." Raphael said with a triumphant smile and walked to his room with a renewed confidence.

_She wants to see me again! _kept ringing in his ears.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Happy Halloween

A month of secret meetings and long goodbyes brought Bevin and Raphael to one particular night a few days before Halloween. Bevin was just putting on her makeup for a Halloween party when she heard a tap on her window and cursed under her breath. Had she really forgotten to tell Raphael about the party? She hesitated to go to the window and hoped that he wouldn't be mad. She opened it with an apologetic smile and his face immediately fell.

"What's going on?" He asked with a sigh.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, I have a party to go to tonight..." She saw the look of disappointment that he tried to hide by looking away and it made her feel terrible, "but you know, I don't have to be there for a little while and I have some leftover gumbo on the stove. You want some?"

"Gumbo?" He asked.

"Yeah, it's a spicy stew with meat and seafood and cajun spices." She ran inside and poured him a bowl, then walked carefully over to give him the bowl. "Try it and let me know what you think, I have to go put on my costume." Raphael took a spoonful and cautiously sipped the broth, it was flavorful and unfamiliar and very good. By the time Bevin returned the whole bowl had been consumed.

"What do you think?" Bevin asked as she crawled through the window, Raphael was about to answer her but was silenced when he saw her outfit. Bevin took the bowl from him with a smile, "I guess you liked it, huh? It left you speechless. That's great!" She placed the bowl on the window sill and stood before him in a fitted polka dot dress that barely covered her butt, guarder straps exposed as they held up thigh-high stockings covered in cherries, and bright red high-heels made every curve more obvious than usual. He was suddenly very aware of how small her waist was and how perfectly round each curve was on her body. He cleared his throat and stood quickly, trying not to look at her.

"Is that your costume?" He asked, trying to sound unaffected. Bevin looked at herself, then at Raphael and smiled her perfect smile, now outlined in a deep red.

"Yeah, do you like it?" She spun around so that he could get a good look, "I'm a pin-up girl!"

"Yep, it's great," he said, turning away from her hurriedly, "well, I should get going."

"No, wait!" Bevin reached out to grab his arm, but he had already moved so she fell over the edge of the fire escape.

"Shit!" Raphael jumped after her, grabbed her and held her tight to his body as he twisted to land on his back. There was a loud crash as they landed, and Raphael groaned. "Are you okay?" He asked, looking at the girl laying on top of him, whose face was red and eyes glossy with tears. "Woah, woah, what's wrong?" He asked, suddenly worried.

"I'm so sorry, Raphael," she sobbed, "I'm okay I'm just...embarrassed..." She slid onto the ground as he sat up and grabbed her shoulders.

"What are you embarrassed for?" His voice was soft and his touch was gentle and Bevin could not help but lean into his chest.

"I'm just so clumsy...I didn't want you to leave and I ended up getting you hurt." She sniffled and looked up at him with her big brown eyes and he could feel his insides melting. He sighed and smiled.

"I'm not hurt, Bevin, don't worry about me." He held her close and then he worked up the courage to tell her, "you know, you really look beautiful in that outfit." Bevin looked up at Raphael with that smile and those eyes and he couldn't help himself, he leaned in and placed a gentle hand behind her head and to his astonishment she kissed him back. Her mouth opened and her body relaxed and she wrapped her arms around his neck and it felt so warm and wonderful in that moment that lasted forever but was over too soon.

When the kiss was over he carried her back to her window and they kissed again and said their goodbyes and not a word was said as she crawled back into her apartment and he disappeared into the night, feeling like he could fly.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Thoughts

Halloween night was the next time they saw one another. Bevin leaned out of her window and planted a kiss on Raphael's lips as he attempted to say hello. It caught him off guard, but it made him happy to know that the other night had not been a fluke.

"Come out with me tonight." Bevin said excitedly as she sat on her bed smiling at him through the window.

"What do you mean? Obviously I'm not really fit for going out in public," Raphael looked at Bevin studiously, she looked like a porcelain doll with her rosy cheeks, pink lips, and perfectly curled hair. "I mean, I know its Halloween and all, but I'm not sure we could pass me off as a good costume."

Bevin nodded. "I know, I know, but I have a costume that's perfect for you!" Raphael wasn't quite sure, but he was willing to let her try. Bevin jumped from her bed and ran to her dresser, she returned with a massive trench coat, a fedora, and bandages. "You are going to be the invisible man!"

"Umm…but you can see me." Bevin laughed as she hurriedly began removing the items that hung from Raphael's shell and body.

"No, listen, it's a novel by H.G. Wells that was made into a movie in the nineteen…thirties…" Bevin's voice trailed off as she began noticing cracks and scars all over Raphael's shell and body for the first time. She had never looked so closely at him, she thought back to the night they met, he had dispatched her attackers so quickly that she had always believed that he was safe. For the first time it occurred to her that he must really be risking his life when he goes out with his brothers, and it made her heart jump into her throat.

"Hey, you okay back there?" Raphael looked over his shoulder at Bevin, whose eyes were glossy with tears as she stared at his duct-taped shell. He immediately whipped around with worried gaze and looked her in the eyes. "Bevin? What happened? Are you okay?" Bevin wiped her eyes and sniffed loudly.

"I'm sorry, yes, I'm okay." She took a deep breath and smiled at him. "I was just…thinking about something sad…don't worry about me." _You have enough to worry about_, Bevin thought as Raphael appeared to calm down. She helped him put on the trench coat and wrapped his face and hands in the bandages, she then brought him a very large pair of suit pants and dress shoes which surprisingly fit him rather well.

"Where did you get pants this big?" He asked and she giggled.

"I have a friend who is a costume designer and I told her I had a friend who plays football who can't find any suits to fit him."

"Well, how did you know how big they needed to be?"

"I guessed." She shrugged. "Do they fit alright?"

"Yeah, actually." He smiled at her and as she smiled back he wondered how long they could keep this up, their little secret life. How much longer would he be able to see her smiling before she realized that there was no point to this? How much longer before she met a man who was attractive and human and realized that she had been wasting her time with a mutant turtle? "Oh! I almost forgot!" She reached inside and grabbed a large pair of sunglasses. When he put them on she squealed excitedly, a sound he had never heard before, but he sort of liked it. "You look perfect!"

"Can I ask what you are?" Raphael asked as they descended the fire escape.

"I am a doll. It's too cold to go to a roof party in a pinup outfit, but I'm still cute, right?" She spun around so that her skirt and petticoat floated around her, revealing only a teasing glimpse of her lacy underwear.

"Absolutely." Raphael said with a smile.

* * *

The pair of them attended a party on the roof of a very nice building near Broadway, Bevin's costume designer friend was the host and greeted Bevin with a scream and a hug.

"You look perfect!" The girl said excitedly, studying Bevin's outfit and makeup. "Where did you find this dress, it's so Victorian? And you're hair, how did you get the perfect curls?"

"Costume store and lots of mousse and hairspray." Bevin explained with a smile, then turned to look at Raphael whose smile was hidden by the bandages.

"Oh. My. God. Who is this massive invisible man?" The costume designer asked, looking and sounding very impressed.

"This is Raphael, that friend I told you about." The girl looked knowingly at Raphael who stared her down from behind his sunglasses.

"Ooooh…" she grinned, "You're _that_ friend. I'm Tallia, it's very nice to meet you." She reached out a hand and he shook it firmly, their eyes fixed on one another. "I'm glad you could make it, hope your brothers aren't missing you." Raphael paused, shocked, and looked at Bevin. She smiled bashfully and shrugged.

"They'll manage without me for tonight." Raphael said cautiously, unsure of how much this girl knew. "Can I ask who you're supposed to be?" That really seemed to please Tallia, because she lit up and took a step back to let him see the whole thing.

"Do you like it? I'm Scarlet O'Hara!" It was a large dress, dark green velvet with what looked like tassels from drapery as a belt. Raphael had no idea who Scarlet O'Hara was so he just nodded. Bevin laughed and grabbed Tallia's hand.

"Tallia, he has no idea who that is. He didn't even know who the invisible man was, don't try to confuse him. Have you seen Louise or Acacia?"

"Oh, yeah! You should see Louise, you'll never guess who she came as." With that she dragged Bevin off into the crowd. Raphael stood back and watched as she was lead to two other girls, one dressed as Rambo the other was dressed in a ridiculous puffy dress that looked like just layers of fabric squares. Tallia pointed toward Raphael and the three of them waved at him while Bevin smiled and laughed, so he waved back.

"He's massive, Bevin! Where did you find him?" Acacia asked as she adjusted the bow on her head.

"Honestly…he saved me from a gang of guys a couple months ago, since then we've just kind of…"

"Fallen in love?" Acacia interrupted. Bevin jumped and shook her head vigorously.

"No! Not love, no!" She then calmed herself and looked over at him, he was watching her shamelessly and it made her face feel hot. "But I will say that we've gotten very close…we even kissed a couple days ago."

"Hah, good going, Bevin." Louise said with a smile, and punched her in the arm.

"Ouch! Louise, why are you dressed as a man?" Bevin pointed out in an attempt to change the subject.

"Because Rambo is awesome! And why are you giving me a hard time when no one knows what Acacia is supposed to be?" Louise pointed an accusing finger at Acacia who puffed out her chest and crossed her arms.

"I told you, I'm Kyary Pamyu Pamyu! She's a Japanese pop star!"

"Yeah, but we're not in Japan! We're in America! So everyone knows who I am, but you just look ridiculous!"

As her friends argued loudly Bevin looked over at Raphael and smiled, she couldn't tell if he was smiling back but he did lower his sunglasses so that she could see his eyes. It made her heart flutter and she hoped that her face wasn't red. She thought about the cracks in his shell and the scars that covered his body, then she thought about his brothers that he talks about all of the time. Would she ever get to meet them? Why wouldn't he introduce her? He had to know that she was aware that they would also be giant turtles, so that couldn't be it. Could it be that he wasn't that invested? Could he really just be another guy, just in a different shell?

Bevin giggled at her own unintended pun and reengaged in the conversation, hoping that she wouldn't always be just his friend.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Emotion and Invitation

"April!" Mikey's excited cry woke Raphael from his dreaming and he groaned as rolled out of the bed. He was glad that April had stopped by, but he was exhausted. He had not gotten home until almost five in the morning and it was only eleven, his late nights with Bevin were starting to wear on him, although not as much as the secret did. Raphael stepped out to join his brothers as they congregated around the beautiful reporter who greeted each of them with a hug.

"Hey, April," Raphael's voice sounded much softer than usual and it worried her.

"Raphael, are you okay?" April asked, but Mikey but in before he could answer.

"He's fine, April, he just had a late night with his girlfriend." Raphael punch Mikey in the chest so hard that he fell to the ground.

"She is not my girlfriend! And I told you not to talk about her!" He stood above his brother, his heart racing. He had not realized how obvious he was, thinking that the whole thing was a secret had been stupid but they had no right to talk about her like they knew her. April placed a hand on Raphael's shoulder and he sighed heavily.

"You've been spending time with a girl?" April asked, honestly curious, and Raphael felt his face warm up as he turned to face her. He nodded and hung his head. "So, you punched Mikey because…?"

"Because he doesn't know her, and she's not my girlfriend…" it hurt him to say it out loud, but the truth was, "we're just friends…"

"Something tells me that you want that to change." April said with a smile, but Raphael's face only fell more as he turned to leave the room, running from the prying eyes of his brothers.

"It doesn't matter what I want." He gritted his teeth and slammed the door to his room so hard that the walls shook and dust fell from the ceiling.

"How long has he been like this?" April asked as she helped Mikey stand.

"Well, he's been talking to the girl since the middle of August, but he only recently started moping around like this." Leonardo explained.

"Yeah, he thought we didn't know where he was running off to, but we followed him. Ninjas! What!" Mikey grinned and gave himself a high five when no one else seemed to be as happy about it.

"Master Splinter knows too, but he thinks that it's just a phase." Donatello said, his eyes sifting through a pile of computer chips as he spoke. "Now, at first we all thought that too, because Raphael likes to be alone and we thought that there was no way he would get emotionally invested in anyone…"

"He's totally in love!" Mikey blurted out. "She gave him this necklace and he's always lookin' at it and sighing. It's so cute."

"Wow…it sounds serious…" April thought for a moment and decided that she should probably talk to Raphael, after all these boys had no experience with romance and Raphael was the most guarded. He would absolutely need guidance in this area, even if he wasn't going to ask for it.

Raphael heard a soft knock on the door and his necklace drop around his neck as he stood to answer it. April stood on the other side and spoke softly through the crack.

"Raphael, I'm sorry that you're brothers are stupid…can I talk to you?" April waited patiently for Raphael to open the door, and walked in with a soft smile when he did.

"What do you wanna talk about?" He asked, his arms crossed over his chest and his expression stern and guarded.

"What's her name?" She asked. Raphael felt his heart flutter, he never spoke to anyone about her, but he could feel the words coming out before he could stop them, like word vomit.

"Bevin, she's a chef and she is beautiful." April smiled at him, she could see in his eyes that he really cared a lot about her. "She is smart and cultured, she's always talking about books and old movies and famous people from forever ago that I've never heard of. I love listening to her talk and watching her move and learning new things about her. She's so funny, and clumsy!" He chuckled as he thought about how many times he has had to pick her up or catch her as she fell. "She could trip over nothing, it's ridiculous!"

"It sounds like you really like her." April pointed out, making Raphael pause and look at her with his most serious expression.

"I do. I worry about her all the time, when I'm not around her I'm thinking about her and wondering if she needs me…" He sat on his bed and rested his head in his hands. "I feel like I'm crazy. I've never thought about anyone this much."

"You know that's normal for someone who just started dating, it sounds like you're in your honeymoon period." April said with a smile and sat beside Raphael.

"We're not dating." Raphael said flatly.

"You said that already," April explained, "but like I said before, you seem to want more than what you have." Raphael looked at her but she stopped him before he could respond. "First of all, it _does_ matter what you want. Second, any woman would be lucky to have you. Third, if she didn't want to be around you she wouldn't be."

"I get what you're saying but…"

"No buts, I think you should go for it."

"April, Splinter says…"

"Don't worry about Splinter, he just wants to protect you."

"Well, he has his reasons…"

"But I don't think Splinter has ever been in your situation. He probably just doesn't understand."

"April, I don't think…"

"Raphael, don't worry so much."

"APRIL, LOOK AT ME!" He jumped up violently and screamed as he motioned to his own face. "I'm a MONSTER! What girl in her right mind would find THIS attractive? What HUMAN girl would want to date a mutant turtle?! Are you stupid? You may be our friend, but you have to know best that there is nothing attractive about THIS!" He stopped yelling but his hands were shaking, his heart racing, and his face was hot. The door to his room opened to reveal Michelangelo.

"Hey, are you yelling at my lady?" He came into the room with his chest puffed out, but Raphael was in no mood.

"She is not your lady, Mikey, she's just like every other girl! She'd nice to your face, but she doesn't like you like that because you are a MONSTER! You are a giant green turtle, you are not even on her radar, so stop acting like you two could be together, because you CAN'T!" The look on Mikey's face went from confusion to despair.

"Raphael! There is no reason for you to talk to him like that!" April stood and went to Mikey. "It's okay, Mikey, he didn't mean any of that."

"Yeah, he's just projecting." Donnie's voice came from where he still sat with his pile of computer chips. "He feels like he's a monster so he can't really be with that girl he likes, so he's taking it out on you. Don't take it personally."

"I'll show you projecting!" Raphael went to tackle Donatello but was stopped in his tracks when he saw Splinter standing before him, his tail twitching dangerously on the floor. "Master!" He stopped and bowed to his father respectfully.

"Raphael…" Splinter sighed, "I am sorry if my words have troubled you…I thought that you would stay away from her if I voiced my concern, but I should have known better. Now you are realizing why I said it, and I am realizing that I may be wrong…" Raphael was unsure of what his father was telling him. "I would very much like to meet the young woman who has captured your attention and dedication. Please extend to her my open invitation."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Finally…

Bevin stood in her underwear looking back and forth between two outfits, unable to decide which one would be appropriate, when she heard a knock on her window. She cursed under her breath and opened the blinds to find Raphael waiting on the fire escape.

Raphael blinked. He squinted his eyes as Bevin opened the window, unable to believe what he was seeing. Bevin was in front of him, kneeling on her bed and looking up at him with frustration, and dressed only in a lacy bra and underpants. He thought he must be hallucinating, because there was no way that she would just let him see her in this state. He had to take a deep breath in order to speak, fearing that his concentration would break he struggled to look directly into her eyes.

"Bevin, what are you wearing?" He asked, sounding almost angry. Bevin looked down at herself, she didn't think that she was that unattractive; sure she had a little bit of a belly and her thighs her sort of large, but she at least thought her curves would make up for that.

"My underwear." She said flatly, sorely disappointed by his reaction, and then slid off of the bed and held up the two outfit options. She had thought, when he had invited her to meet his family that it had meant that he was trying to make their relationship something more than friendship. She had been so excited, but his reaction was all she needed to realize just how wrong she was. "I couldn't decide."

"I don't know…" Raphael would not have minded if she simply stayed in her underwear, but he couldn't let his brothers see just how sexy she was. "Just pick one and let's go." He turned away and let out the breath he had been holding, then worked hard to steady his racing heartbeat. He wasn't sure if she was trying to mess with him or not. Was this flirting? Or did she just not care that much?

Bevin decided on an A-line dress with a corseted bodice, she was determined to be sexy, if not for Raphael then for herself. She was so upset, she just didn't understand why he had sounded so angry, and it wasn't like she had waited in her underwear specifically for him. Maybe he thought that she was being skanky and he didn't like it.

* * *

They arrived at the lair deep within the sewers after an entirely silent trip, both lost in their thoughts and fearing the worst.

"Here we are." Raphael announced as he opened the door to the lair to reveal Michelangelo breakdancing in the middle of the main room to nineties rap music. When he heard the door open Mikey stopped mid-step and ran over to grab Bevin up in a hug.

"Hi there, it's so nice to meet you, I'm Michelangelo but you can call me Mikey." He spoke quickly and as he spoke he ran away from Raphael with the girl in his arms. He dropped her on a couch in front of a large television and handed her a microphone. "Karaoke! Pick a duet, quick, before Raph gets over here." They could hear Raphael coming, yelling at Mikey angrily. Confused but intrigued, Bevin chose "You're the One That I Want" from Grease.

Raphael had lost sight of his brother and Bevin before he had realized what Michelangelo was doing. He was up to something, and Raphael wasn't going to let him get away with whatever it was.

"Raphael, why are you yelling?" Leonardo appeared from around a corner and blocked his way. "I thought you were going to get your girlfriend?" Raphael screamed at the top of his lungs.

"She is NOT my girlfriend!" Leonardo rolled his eyes at his obviously angry brother and sighed.

"Whatever, where is she? You know father wanted to meet her, so that's the first priority. I hope you're not trying to sneak her into your room or anything." Leo wagged a finger at his brother who growled and shoved him out of the way before running down the hall.

Raphael burst into the game room to find Bevin and Mikey in the middle of a joyous duet. He froze, his anger rising to a level of serenity as he watched Bevin dancing with his brother and them smiling and singing together. Leonardo walked up behind him and smiled when he saw the unfamiliar girl singing with Mikey. He placed a hand on Raphael's shoulder and spoke softly to his brother.

"You know he's just trying to push your buttons, Raph," Leonardo couldn't help but chuckle when his brother glared at him with nostrils flared. "She's really pretty, Raph, you'd better keep an eye on her or Mikey will steal her away." He then stepped into the room and sat on the couch to watch the end of the duet. When it was over Bevin was smiling and laughing, and Raphael could not continue being angry seeing her so happy. Leonardo looked over his shoulder and noticed how Raphael seemed to have suddenly calmed himself and followed his soft gaze to the laughing girl who stood with Mikey.

Bevin hugged Mikey and thanked him, "That was so much fun, I'm glad you kidnapped me." They laughed together.

"Honestly I'm sorry if I freaked you out, I was really just messing with Raph, but I'm glad you had fun."

"It's okay, but that was kind of an uncomfortable way to be carried."

"Yeah, sorry, I wasn't sure how heavy you were gonna be."

"I'm not _that_ heavy, am I?" Bevin laughed, then gasped loudly as Michelangelo scooped her up.

"Nope, light as a feather," He laughed as he held her above his head. "I could play catch with you. Hey, Leo, go long." Leo shook his head, thinking that Mikey was kidding.

"Mikey, just put her down." He started calmly, but Mikey was already poised to throw her. He tossed her from where he stood and she screamed a shrill scream as she flew through the air. Leonardo leapt from the couch just in time to catch her, but his heel caught on the back of the couch and he fell on his back with Bevin in his arms. Their eyes met and he smiled apologetically, "Hi, I'm Leonardo, it's nice to meet you. I'm sorry about my brothers."

"It's good to meet you, Leonardo, I'm Bevin," Bevin laughed, this was the most fun she had ever had, she couldn't believe that she was literally being tossed like a football. "I apologize for being used as a football." By the time they were on their feet Raphael had Mikey up against the wall, ready to punch him in the face. "Raphael, stop it, I'm fine." Bevin spoke softly, but Raphael responded almost immediately, releasing his brother and walking to her side. Leo and Mikey exchanged an impressed look and a smile.

The four of them walked out to the main part of the lair to find April entering with arms full of groceries.

"Oh, let me get those for you!" Michelangelo rushed over and grabbed the bags from April, who thanked him with a smile.

"Thanks, Mikey, I figured that we should have something other than pizza since you have a guest tonight." April took off her coat and offered a hand to Bevin. "You must be Bevin, Raphael has told me a lot about you." Bevin shook April's hand and looked at Raphael, whose face was stoic is ever.

"Really? He told me all about his brothers, but he never mentioned you…" Bevin felt her heart sinking, the beautiful woman before her was far more attractive than she was, and if she was already friends with all of the brothers then she must be the reason Raphael had not shown an interest in her.

"I'm April O'Neal, I'm a reporter." April smiled, but could see that Bevin wasn't in a pleasant mood. "So, what do you do for a living?"

"I'm a sous chef in a little dive, going to culinary school, though. My goal is to be a personal chef." Bevin tried her hardest to keep her smile on, but unlike Raphael she knew she was no good at hiding her mood.

"Really? Then you should help me and Donnie cook dinner." April looked around and noticed that Donatello was not present. "Where is Donnie, by the way?"

"Probably in the command center." Leo explained, "I'm going to tell Master Splinter that Bevin and April are here."

"Okay, Mikey, why don't you put the food in the kitchen while I get Donnie." April instructed, to which Mikey saluted and made his way to the kitchen. Before they knew it Raphael and Bevin were alone, standing side-by-side in silence.

"You never told me about April," Bevin said softly, hanging her head in embarrassment. "You know, if you were already interested in someone you never should have kissed me…or at least you should have said something after the fact." Bevin felt tears well up in her eyes and hid her face with her hair so that Raphael could not see.

"Wait," Raphael was confused, he turned to face Bevin and tried to get her to look at him by grabbing her shoulders, but she turned away from him. "Bevin, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Why didn't you tell me? Here I've been practically throwing myself at you, wondering why you weren't even remotely interested…" She sniffed and wiped her eyes, "…I should've figured it out, I wasn't paying attention…I'm sorry." She pushed him away and ran, but had no idea where she was going. She rounded a corner and tripped, she almost didn't feel the pain in her knee through her tears. She ended up running through a curtain of beads into a room lit only by candles, she crouched in the fetal position and began hyperventilating. She wished that she had been paying attention when they had made their way down here, now she was trapped in this mortifying situation.

"You should lay down if you're having trouble breathing." Leonardo appeared before her, knelt down with a tissue in hand. Bevin looked into his blue eyes and mustered a smile. She took the tissue as he offered it and uncurled herself. "I know it's none of my business, but whatever Raph did…I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt your feelings. He's not very good at emotions, and sometimes you have to give him some leeway."

"No, he didn't do anything wrong…I was being stupid…" Bevin wiped her face and sniffled as she smiled sadly up at Leonardo. "Thank you, Leonardo, I appreciate your kindness." She sighed and looked down at her hands, even more embarrassed now that Raphael's brother was a witness to her stupidity. Leonardo watched as the candle light danced across her face, he couldn't help but notice how her eyes sparkled. She really was beautiful, even as she sat crying before him, no wonder Raphael had fallen for her.

"Listen, if you ever need to complain about Raph I am all ears," Leonardo offered with a smile, "I love having things to hang over his head. Like the fact that he sings Celine Dion when he thinks no one can hear him." Bevin laughed heartily at the thought of her large gruff friend singing "All By Myself" with Celine in the background. Leonardo smiled, her laughter was gloriously ridiculous to listen to, almost a cackle as she threw back her head dramatically.

"Oh, I would pay money to see that." Bevin's laughter died down and she wiped a few stray tears from her cheek.

"Do you wanna tell me why you were upset, maybe I can help?" Leonardo offered. Bevin hesitated, but felt comfortable with Leonardo, like he would keep her secret for her.

"Okay…" She took a deep breath, "I really like Raphael, but he really hasn't returned my affection. We kissed a coupled times before Halloween, so I thought for a while that he must like me back, but after that he sort of backed off again. I mean, he still comes over and hangs out with me, and he knows practically everything about me by now, but he hasn't made any moves since I introduced him to my friends on Halloween. Then tonight I come here thinking that maybe he's trying to tell me something, but then April…of course he wouldn't be into me when April's around, she's so much prettier than me." Leonardo had to stop her there.

"Wait, Bevin, you think that Raphael is into April?" She nodded and Leo shook his head. "No, you've got it wrong. April is just our friend, we've known her for years, and the only one around here with a crush on April is Mikey." Bevin looked unconvinced, so Leo continued. "Bevin, do you have any idea how head over heels Raph is for you? That necklace you gave him is his prized possession, Mikey and Donnie hid it from him as a joke once and he literally almost killed them. Father had him doing splits and balancing eggs on his toes for twenty-four hours for that, but he didn't care. As soon as he was done he went straight to you. You're like his drug, even though our father tells him he shouldn't be with a human like that he just won't listen." Bevin was astonished by the story, and was compelled to believe Leonardo by his honest smile. It made her heart flutter to hear from his own brother how Raphael cared about her. She nodded and smiled and took the hand that Leonardo offered to her. He helped her to her feet gently and wiped the last tear from her cheek, and the smile she gave him was so open and vulnerable that it gave him new feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was a tingle at first, just a small feeling, but as he walked beside her to the kitchen he felt it slowly building and wondered what it could be.

On their way to the kitchen the pair ran into Raphael, who was standing frozen in the hallway with a look of bewilderment on his face. When he saw Leonardo with Bevin he felt a sudden sneaking suspicion form in his mind and he glared at his brother. He made himself as large as he could, which for him was large enough to take up the entire hallway, and spoke harshly.

"Bevin, I need to talk to you." Bevin said nothing, but turned to Leo and nodded a quick thank you before taking Raphael's hand and letting him lead her away. Leonardo watch the couple disappear with a smile on his face, but the feeling in his stomach made him feel almost angry at Raphael and he wasn't sure why.

Raphael led Bevin to his room and shut the door quietly, then paced back and forth for a minute before finally finding the words. He rounded on Bevin, who had made herself comfortable, sitting on his bed and smiling up at him patiently. He felt the heat rising in him and turned away hurriedly. Bevin giggled, she had never seen him so flustered, he always kept his composure and it was nice to finally see this side of him.

"Raphael, I—"

"Bevin, don't talk right now, I have to get this out and it's not easy." Bevin nodded and waited for him to speak again. Finally he knelt in front of her and took her hand, which made her heart skip a beat as she looked into his eyes. "I am…sorry…" he seemed to cringe at the word as his lips formed it, "…for ever making you think that I wasn't completely obsessed with you. I kept telling myself that there was no way that you could look at me the way I look at you because of what I am." He couldn't speak anymore, it was too much emotion and he couldn't let her think he was weak.

"What you are, Raphael," Bevin spoke softly and took his face gently in her hands, "is a man who saved my life when we first met, and who has made every day of my life amazing since then. I can't imagine being with anyone else." The kiss they shared at that moment was full and passionate and honest, it was not greedy or wanting, and when they parted there was nothing left to say.

* * *

_**Phew, that was a long one! Hello, dear readers, I just wanted to thank all of my reviewers, because of you I rewrote this entire chapter so that it would be a great one for you all! Thanks for your support and inspiration!**_


End file.
